Optical transceivers are widely used in both data communication and telecommunication fields. Computers are increasingly being connected with communication lines and other devices or networks with the computers performing as servers to the peripherally connected computers or devices. The volume of data sent and received by the computer serving as a server of a network is such that the networks are advantageously constructed using optical fiber lines in order to increase the throughput of data.
Optical fiber lines and the associated optical signals require transceivers to convert the optical light pulse signals to electronic signals, which are usable by the telecommunication systems and computer systems. Such a transceiver includes a transmitting optical component and a receiving optical component to send and receive the optical signals.
Industry standards and agreements have been established to define the physical parameters of the transceiver devices and, particularly, the overall interface. This permits the interconnection of different devices manufactured by different manufacturers without the use of physical adapters.
One of such industry agreements is the Small Form-factor Pluggable (SFP) Transceiver MultiSource Agreement (SFP MSA or SFP agreement). The SFP agreement establishes a module enclosure. The module may be connected to a module interface on the main circuit board. An optical transceiver module is a telecommunication device that can receive optical signals, convert the received optical signals into electrical signals, and output the electrical signals. Simultaneously, the optical transceiver module can also receive electrical signals, convert the received electrical signals into optical signals, and output the optical signals and carry on the transmission. A common optical transceiver module can have different kinds of housings to abide by some agreements or standards. For example, an SFF (small form-factor) agreement housing includes an electrical interface, and an optical interface. An SFP (Small Form-factor Pluggable) compatible housing includes an electrical interface, and an optical interface. A 1×9 transceiver (a module structure by Lucent) housing includes an electrical interface and an optical interface for receiving or transmitting electrical and optical signals.
When an SFP module is used in applications, it is plugged into a receiving cage and is locked inside the receiving cage with a lock mechanism. In most prior art, an SFP optical transceiver module needs to be pulled out of the cage with two fingers. The two fingers require a finger size space between two neighboring optical transceiver modules, thus setting an upper limit to the density of the optical transceiver module matrix in application. In ordering to eliminate the requirement of pulling off an optical transceiver module by two fingers, an unlocking mechanism is needed. Some prior art optical transceiver modules have unlocking mechanisms allowing an optical transceiver module to be unlocked from its receiving cage by pushing a sliding plate into the receiving cage. There is still a need for a finger space for holding the module so it can be held and pulled out. The sliding plate of the locking mechanism has to be manually restored to its original position after the optical transceiver module is unlocked. If the manual step is skipped, the optical transceiver module may still remain in the unlocked condition, making the optical transceiver module unsafe and unreliable for operation. Some other prior art systems have made attempts to eliminate this manual restoration step. But the prior art systems remain to be complex, expensive to manufacture, and not easy to use.
Optical transceiver components fabricated by many manufacturers have different designs and physical dimensions. In most prior art systems, the housing case bodies of the optical transceiver modules need to be redesigned to fit the optical transceiver components from different manufacturers. The design and manufacturing tailored to each manufacturer is costly and time consuming.